winter salad: beet, clementine, avocado
Dec. 19th, 2012 01:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rushthatspeaksTonight I made a really, really, really good salad for dinner.
Then I noticed that it is vegan, gluten-free, and nightshade-free, as well as filling. I wasn't trying for any of that, but it's always nice to have more things I could cook for any of my possible houseguests.
This will serve two to three as a dinner and probably up to six as a small salad.
Ingredients:
about a pound and a half of beets, sans greens
one parsnip
four clementines
one ripe avocado
about three tablespoons olive oil
about two tablespoons coarse strong mustard
small handful roasted nuts (I used cashews)
salt
Scrub and dry the beets and the parsnip, but do not peel. Toss their outsides in about two tablespoons of olive oil and rub in a small handful of salt. Roast them.
The thing is, the internet has many, many primers on how to roast beets, and either beets hate me or the internet is wrong, because no matter the size of my beets-- and the ones I had tonight were about golf-ball-sized-- the damn things do not roast until it has been way, way, way longer than I would like it to be. I know it's not an oven problem, because it's been true for multiple ovens. I preheat. I've tried wrapping them in foil packets, I've tried parboiling them, I've tried just rolling them in oil and putting them on a cookie sheet, and the conclusion I have come to is that there is something about me and beets, because tonight I roasted eight golf-ball-sized beets and one parsnip in a 425F oven on a preheated cookie sheet for an hour and a half (note: this oven usually runs hot) and they were, when I took them out, just barely tender. It is anti-magical. So I am not going to tell you how to roast your beets and parsnip, because, demonstrably, I am not a person you should be listening to on this matter. Just roast them. For persons not me, I gather this process often takes c. forty-five minutes.
While the root vegetables are roasting, peel the clementines. Chop them into quarter-inch rounds horizontally, removing any pips and extraneous pith. Put the clementines into a colander or sieve over a bowl, adding any juice that came from the chopping, and toss with a small handful of salt. Let sit at least half an hour, stirring occasionally and pressing lightly against the sides of the colander.
Peel and dice the avocado. Put it into the bowl under the clementines and toss with the juice to keep it from going brown. Chop the nuts, and leave them separate.
When the vegetables are roasted, peel and end them, which should be very easy, and slice into even rounds.
Mix the avocado and clementine juice with the mustard and remaining olive oil. Being a little rough with it will help the creaminess of the dressing, depending on the ripeness of your avocado, but you do want some large chunks remaining. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Plating:
apportion the clementine pieces evenly among your plates. Top each pile of clementines with rounds of parsnip, then of beet. Drizzle with avocado dressing. Sprinkle lightly with nuts.
Then I noticed that it is vegan, gluten-free, and nightshade-free, as well as filling. I wasn't trying for any of that, but it's always nice to have more things I could cook for any of my possible houseguests.
This will serve two to three as a dinner and probably up to six as a small salad.
Ingredients:
about a pound and a half of beets, sans greens
one parsnip
four clementines
one ripe avocado
about three tablespoons olive oil
about two tablespoons coarse strong mustard
small handful roasted nuts (I used cashews)
salt
Scrub and dry the beets and the parsnip, but do not peel. Toss their outsides in about two tablespoons of olive oil and rub in a small handful of salt. Roast them.
The thing is, the internet has many, many primers on how to roast beets, and either beets hate me or the internet is wrong, because no matter the size of my beets-- and the ones I had tonight were about golf-ball-sized-- the damn things do not roast until it has been way, way, way longer than I would like it to be. I know it's not an oven problem, because it's been true for multiple ovens. I preheat. I've tried wrapping them in foil packets, I've tried parboiling them, I've tried just rolling them in oil and putting them on a cookie sheet, and the conclusion I have come to is that there is something about me and beets, because tonight I roasted eight golf-ball-sized beets and one parsnip in a 425F oven on a preheated cookie sheet for an hour and a half (note: this oven usually runs hot) and they were, when I took them out, just barely tender. It is anti-magical. So I am not going to tell you how to roast your beets and parsnip, because, demonstrably, I am not a person you should be listening to on this matter. Just roast them. For persons not me, I gather this process often takes c. forty-five minutes.
While the root vegetables are roasting, peel the clementines. Chop them into quarter-inch rounds horizontally, removing any pips and extraneous pith. Put the clementines into a colander or sieve over a bowl, adding any juice that came from the chopping, and toss with a small handful of salt. Let sit at least half an hour, stirring occasionally and pressing lightly against the sides of the colander.
Peel and dice the avocado. Put it into the bowl under the clementines and toss with the juice to keep it from going brown. Chop the nuts, and leave them separate.
When the vegetables are roasted, peel and end them, which should be very easy, and slice into even rounds.
Mix the avocado and clementine juice with the mustard and remaining olive oil. Being a little rough with it will help the creaminess of the dressing, depending on the ripeness of your avocado, but you do want some large chunks remaining. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Plating:
apportion the clementine pieces evenly among your plates. Top each pile of clementines with rounds of parsnip, then of beet. Drizzle with avocado dressing. Sprinkle lightly with nuts.
no subject
Date: 2012-12-19 03:41 pm (UTC)